The Strange Saga of Aunt Pratt

Aunt Pratt, or, if you will, her spirit, did not take kindly to this. In fact, she made what family members described as a "mighty disturbance." This usually took the form of the sound of a woman rocking in the attic late at night. A number of guests, as well as Hills and Carters told of hearing the incessant rocking on certain nights. Yet when they summoned courage to check the attic, all was still and quiet. Nothing was amiss, although they admitted getting chills up their spines when they looked into the eyes of Aunt Pratt's portrait amidst the dust, cobwebs and clutter of the attic.

Eventually, the restlessness of her spirit proved too much for the occupants of the house. Prudently, they chose to bring the portrait back down and hang it in its rightful place. Once this was done, the strange rocking sounds were never heard again.

Intriguingly, however, this did not end the troubled travels of Aunt Pratt. A few years ago the Virginia Travel Council scoured about the Commonwealth in search of relics, antiques, and other items associated with psychic phenomena for a tourist promotion they were assembling in New York City. Council officials, having heard the story of Aunt Pratt's ghostly rocking, asked if they might borrow her portrait for the exhibit. And so, "she" was crated and shipped north. But no sooner had she been hung on a wall when she once again "came to life," openly venting her displeasures at being so far away from home.

According to credible accounts, the portrait was once observed "swinging" in its display case. Then one morning workmen found the portrait lying on the floor several feet away from the case, and, in their words, "heading toward the exit."

As a security measure, officials had Aunt Pratt locked up in a closet when not on exhibit. One night a maintenance crew became unnerved when they heard "knocking and crying" coming from the locked closet. No one was inside. The next morning the portrait mysteriously had escaped from the closet and was lying on the floor outside.

At this point a psychic expert was called in. She studied the portrait carefully and felt strong sensations. The psychic believed there were two women involved in the portrait, and two theories were offered in possible explanation. One contended that there are actually two portraits, one painted on top of the other. The supposition here is that the original lady involved has, perhaps for centuries, been struggling to regain her identity and respect. The other consideration is that a model perhaps sat in for Aunt Pratt during the original painting, again pointing to the conceivability of a deep-rooted identity crisis.

Whether or not either of these ideas has any validity, the psychic expert was convinced that there was indeed a powerful spiritual phenomenon associated with the portrait; that the person involved was somehow trying to convey her irritance at being, to her mind, indignantly displayed.

Many experts agree that spirits which manifest themselves in the manner Aunt Pratt did, are actually ghosts of residences who believe, even though they are dead and gone, that the house they lived in still belongs to them. This seems the most plausible explanation in Aunt Pratt's instance.

Subsequent events added credence to this line of thought. On its way back south from the New York showing, the portrait was taken to a shop in Richmond so repairs could be made on the now battered frame. When it was picked up, the shop owner said that ever since Aunt Pratt had been in his care, he heard bells ringing. This, he deemed at best odd, and at worst, eerily haunting, because, he added, there were no bells of any kind in his shop.

The portrait was then restored once more to its proper place on a wall in the downstairs bedroom. Since that time, there have been no further strange occurrences at Shirley.

Aunt Pratt, at last, was home.